Training and Swordsmanship

A week had already passed since I visited Deschurn's cabin.

During that time, I endured the blows and learned various things from Deshurun. Honestly, they had nothing to do with the swordsmanship I had expected.

'Of course, they weren't completely useless.'

Still, it was a bit disappointing since he was the renowned Aura Master of the world.

Even Nickel, who became an Aura Master through relentless training, had a hard time learning proper swordsmanship. I had hoped that this opportunity would allow me to learn it.

'Well, I'm not his official disciple or blood relative.'

It would be amazing if he taught me a swordsmanship that could be considered a vision.

Today, as I walked out of the cabin, expecting to be struck once again, I saw Deschurn playing with fresh air at the pavilion.

"You're here. Let's go."

"Yes? Go where?"

"Today's training is a bit special. Let's talk as we go."

The mention of special training sparked some excitement within me. Could he be teaching me about the sword?

As I followed behind Deschurn, he strolled around, observing the surroundings as if taking a leisurely walk, and spoke.

"Your habits have improved quite a bit over the past few days. As I mentioned before, your extraordinary eyes are a remarkable talent. It's just that you haven't been able to distinguish the right time and place to use it, which is regrettable. So, if we continue to train together, your talent can flourish."

Listening to his words, it seemed like it wasn't related to swordsmanship again. But I continued to listen quietly as Deschurn spoke further.

"Now, what you need is an environment where you can fully unleash your talent. By repeating this process, you can correct your habits and bring out your talent."

"An environment where I can unleash my talent?"

I felt a sense of unease.

What is he planning now?

Seeing Deschurn not answering my question, a slightly ominous feeling passed through me. But what can I do?

I'm the one who's disappointed.

Soon, we arrived at a deep gorge, or rather, a place with cliffs.

'What is this all about?' I wondered.

The location was called the Devil's View Mountain Range, so there could have been various things, but the problem was why he brought me here.

After we arrived, Deschurn was simply looking down at the abyss of the cliff. Curious, I also looked down following his gaze.

It was a dizzying pit that seemed to go on forever, with the bottom barely visible.

"Take care," Deshurun said.

"Yes?" I replied, filled with doubt.

In the moment I gave a questioning response to his sudden words, I suddenly saw his foot approaching me.

Whoosh.

"What the...?"

His sudden kick caught me off guard, and I could feel myself falling without a chance to react.

"What is this...!"

I quickly turned my body to face the approaching ground, maintaining composure as I checked its trajectory.

'I'm going to die.'

This son of a... How absurd!

Various thoughts crossed my mind.

Still, Deshurun wouldn't have thrown me into this pit without any reason.

Surely there must be a way to survive...

But the fall was too fast, and the brief floating time of less than 20 seconds was too short to make any decisions.

'The ground...'

Just as I imagined my body shattering into pieces upon impact with the ground...

Thud.

Opening my eyes, I realized that there was no impact at all.

'What is this?'

As I examined my body, there was nothing wrong.

Looking up, all I could see was a faint light in the darkness, as if it were a small dot.

"A mana anomaly."

That's the only explanation.

In fact, the reason why the Krates Mountain Range was called the Devil'Land was not only due to its rugged terrain, but also because of the various mana anomalies and mutated monsters caused by the high mana concentration.

Still, he could have given me some warning or pushed me off the cliff so suddenly. What was he thinking?

If I were weak-hearted, I could have died from cardiac arrest during the fall.

While harboring some grievances towards Deschurn, I began to feel signs of life around me.

Growl.

Monsters surrounded me, their red eyes gleaming as they revealed their presence.

Compared to the creatures I had encountered on the mountain so far, these monsters looked much fiercer, as if they were related to these mana anomalies.

'So this is it?'

Was this the environment where I could unleash my talent?

What a load of crap.

Growl!

.

.

.

.

It took about another week to escape from the cliff.

Fortunately, there was a spiral-shaped path that allowed me to climb back up, but I had to endure attacks from monsters and creatures for a whole week, barely getting any sleep and constantly being on the move.

While the experience reminded me of extreme missions I had undertaken in my previous life, it didn't exactly put me in a good mood. However, it did sharpen my spirit and energy.

"You've done well," Deschurn said.

He gave me only one day of rest before immediately starting another intense training session.

The sharp edge I had honed with great difficulty gradually dulled, just like a swordsmith's blade being worn away.

After enduring a week of intense training, I once again entered the cliff.

'It's extreme.'

This was the first time I had undergone training that pushed me to the brink of death.

Even though I had come from a special forces background, I had never been subjected to such brutal treatment.

Except for basic training as a recruit, I had always approached training with scientific methods and efficiency. But this was simply throwing oneself into physical confrontations with nothing but brute force and willpower.

It was a practical training where it was either life or death.

After repeating this for about a month, Deschurn finally said, "You've improved enough."

The instincts I had acquired with my body allowed me to erase my previous habits.

After a month of intense training, I could finally wield my combat talent freely.

In addition, my proficiency in mana manipulation had significantly increased.

Ding!

[Condition met.]

[A potential evolvable entity has been discovered.]

[Adrias Cromwell's Talent: Potential evolution of 'Combat' - 30%]

[Would you like to evolve?]

Evolution from prodigy to genius seems to progress slowly in terms of proficiency.

Even after all that, it was only 30%.

Still, what I learned from this opportunity was that evolution was possible from as low as 30%.

The same applied to other talents and skills. They needed to have a minimum potential of 30% to trigger the evolution prompt.

Having this information was not a bad outcome.

"Now that you have the basics, let's move on to teaching you some real techniques," Deschurn said unexpectedly. Instead of our usual meta-training, he had something else in mind.

He stood there holding a long branch in one hand and effortlessly assumed a posture, unlike his usual self.

"Swordsmanship, sword techniques, and all other forms of wielding a sword are more important than you might think. The reason is because of the presence of mana."

With a swing of the branch, the air exploded, and a tree on the other side was cleaved diagonally.

I couldn't help but stare in awe as the collapsing tree trunk left me speechless.

"Most sword techniques in the present day are developed in relation to the flow of mana. They consist of movements and manipulation that maximize the destructive power of mana. So even if you have an abundance of mana, there will always be a difference between someone who knows proper sword techniques and someone who doesn't. This applies not only to swords but to all weapon skills."

As he swung the sword again, this time there was no sound, but the air was sliced apart. However, instead of the tree being cleaved, it exploded as if it had been hit by a bomb.

"By utilizing various mana techniques according to different sword techniques, the results can vary greatly. This applies not only to swords but also to the body. By using mana that activates the body, such as spells and divine techniques, your movements can change. And when combined with sword techniques, the destructive power increases exponentially."

Deschurn's image seemed to fade away like an illusion, and before I knew it, he was standing right next to me, explaining with great detail.

Although his voice seemed to come from the front, I could now see him next to me, which was more terrifying than awe-inspiring.

'This is the true skill of an Aura Master.'

I was in awe, my eyes wide open.

The enemies I had faced so far were mere ants.

Of course, there was one instance when I encountered Fayat, who displayed similar movements, but at that time, I was in the midst of using lethargy and couldn't fully appreciate it.

"If I had enough time, I would teach you all sorts of things, but for now, I'll start by teaching you the basics of mana manipulation and swordsmanship."

He explained in detail the basic thrusts and cuts, which were the only techniques I knew.

Finally, I could learn swordsmanship and mana manipulation that I couldn't learn from Nickel, and it felt like experiencing a whole new world.

Swish.

Crack!

Following Deschurn's instructions, I swung the sword while utilizing mana, and the tree about a meter away showed a visible mark.

Of course, it was far from cutting down or destroying the entire tree, but even this level of achievement was more than enough to feel surreal.

'Magic and swordsmanship give off different sensations.'

And if I mastered it well enough, I could mix magic with swordsmanship to create something exciting.

For example, a sword technique infused with the technique of a fireball, rather than a simple sword swing.

Of course, I would need to become proficient enough with mana manipulation without consciously thinking about it to attempt such a mix.

Right now, even swinging the sword once to generate a sword aura was difficult without concentration.

The more I learned, the more regretful I felt.

If I had a bit more time, I could have learned so much more.

Especially with swordsmanship, unlike dark magic, there was no need to desperately hide such abilities, which made the feeling even more enticing.

"Just because you succeeded once, are you going to take a break? Keep going," Deschurn said.

"Yes," I replied, even though he didn't need to tell me to continue. I already had that intention.

I had never realized that such an enjoyable thing was known only by the knights of the Academy.

'But is it supposed to be this easy?' I wondered.

Come to think of it, none of the enemies I had faced so far had used sword auras.

Of course, I wouldn't be able to use it immediately in a real battle.

It still required tremendous concentration, making it useless in urgent situations.

'But if I think about it, when I played as Louis, he had been using sword auras since his first year in practical battles. Well, he was the first playable character, after all.'

Other characters who used swords also seemed to have started using sword auras by their second year of game time.

Even the highly talented playable characters seemed to have only started using them at that level. It was no wonder the weak opponents I had faced so far hadn't used them.

'Anyway, it seems that moving my body suits my nature.'

I continued to carve the tree using sword auras.

Deschurn watched Adrias effortlessly create sword auras and felt a thrill.

Though he didn't show it on the surface, internally he repeated one word after another.

'He's gone mad, completely mad! This guy is insane!'

I had planned to pour out everything I had left in the remaining time, but this was beyond my expectations.

'Even that kid I accidentally met, Louis, could only understand and couldn't immediately apply my demonstration.'

That alone was already impressive.

Simply showing a demonstration and teaching mana manipulation would have allowed him to grasp the basics within this year, assuming he continued to make efforts.

'But now that I see it, not only does he have physical talent, but his talent for mana is also exceptional. Or is it because of his unique constitution?'

Regardless of the reason, I had to change my thinking now that things had turned out this way.

Deschurn once again watched Adrias create sword auras and leave marks on the tree.

And as he pondered deeply, he finally made up his mind.

'Well, since I don't have any other disciples and it's about time to consider a successor.'

With such talent, even with just a little guidance, he would grow on his own.

Of course, there was a strong desire to watch over and nurture him, but it would benefit neither him nor himself.

So now, what needed to be done...

'It's been a while since I've had to write with a brush on paper.'

It was time to prepare a gift for him, who would be both the first and last disciple.